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CONFRONTING THE RISE OF RACISM, ISLAMOPHOBIA & ANTI-SEMITISM

Now is an urgent time for anti-racists to organise. We need to defend refugees and migrants, oppose Islamophobia and Antisemitism and stop all racist scapegoating.

Theresa May continues to use the future of millions of EU nationals as a bargaining chip in Brexit negotiations. The tragic aftermath of the terror attacks in Manchester, Westminster and at London Bridge has led to a ramping up of Islamophobia with May arguing that “enough is enough” in the face of “Islamic extremism”.

It’s this kind of scapegoating of the Muslim community alongside the rantings of the right wing press that open the door to attacks like the terrorist assault on Finsbury Park Mosque. In such a heated atmosphere and with UKIP trounced in the general election sections of the far right want to seize the time and take to the streets, using Islamophobia to win support.

In the US, Trump’s attacks on migrants and Muslims have opened the door to the far right. At Charlottesville we saw fascists marching with torches, swatikas and confederate flags and Heather Heyer murdered. There has been a brilliant response by anti-racists in the US since the Charlottesville events.

In Europe, the far right look to replicate the growth of the likes of Marine Le Pen and the Front National in France. She has developed a movement centred on Islamophobia and opposition to immigration. The combination got her into the final round of this year’s French Presidential elections.

The ongoing reality of institutional racism in Britain has been highlighted by the horrific death toll at Grenfell Tower. The Tories won’t even grant a full amnesty to survivors and their families are undocumented migrants.

The deaths after contact with police of Edson DaCosta, Rashan Charles and Darren Cumberbatch are recent examples of how black lives don’t seem to matter to the forces of law and order.

It’s an urgent task to build a mass anti-racist movement in Britain. To build a united movement we must build opposition to racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism in every workplace, every community and on every college campus.

Come to the conference and join the debate about how we build the anti-racist movement.